''I Wanna Be Santa Claus'' is the 12th studio album by

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

. A Christmas album, it was issued in 1999.

Background and recording

Ringo Starr and musical partner Mark Hudson composed "Dear Santa" and "Christmas Eve" in July 1998 at Starr's Surrey residence. The pair of the songs were recorded a few months later, between 14 and 16 September in the UK. Follow-up sessions did not commence till 8 March 1999 at Whatinthewhatthe? Studios in Los Angeles, where the tracks "

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a fictional reindeer created by Robert L. May. Rudolph is usually depicted as the ninth and youngest of Santa Claus's reindeer, using his luminous red nose to lead the reindeer team and guide Santa's sleigh on ...

", " The Little Drummer Boy", " Christmas Time (Is Here Again)" and further work on "Dear Santa", were taped that day. "Christmas Time (Is Here Again") was originally recorded by

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

in 1967 for their annual Christmas record for members of their fan club. Featured on these tracks were Starr, Hudson, Jim Cox and Steve Dudas. Recorded throughout 1999 between Starr and Hudson, ''I Wanna Be Santa Claus''—which is composed of half-and-half traditional songs and new originals—was made in several studios in the US and UK, with their families joining in and including two notable celebrity guests,

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of Steven Tyler (lead vocals), Joe Perry (guitar), Tom Hamilton (bass), Joey Kramer (drums) and Brad Whitford (guitar). Their style, which is rooted in blues-ba ...

's Joe Perry and

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

member

Timothy B. Schmit Timothy Bruce Schmit (born October 30, 1947) is an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He has performed as the bassist and vocalist for Poco and the Eagles, having replaced bassist and vocalist Randy Meisner in both cases. Schmit has al ...

Jeff Lynne Jeffrey Lynne (born 30 December 1947) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the co-founder of the rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), which was formed in 1970. As a songwriter, he has contr ...

also sings backing vocals on "Come on Christmas, Christmas Come On", ''Scroll down to the section header'' Miscellaneous production sessions 1997 to 1999 ''click'' Come on Christmas, Christmas Come On ''then click'' Album Version. "I Wanna Be Santa Claus", ''Scroll down to the section header'' Miscellaneous production sessions 1997 to 1999 ''click'' I Wanna Be Santa Claus ''then click'' Album Version. and "Christmas Time (Is Here Again)". ''Scroll down to the section header'' Miscellaneous production sessions 1997 to 1999 ''click'' Christmas Time Is Here Again ''then click'' Album Version. The final sessions for the album were held on 8 and 9 September at Whatinthewhatthe? Studios, with mixing taking place at

A&M Studios The Jim Henson Company Lot, formerly A&M Studios, is a studio property located just south of the southeast corner of North La Brea Avenue and Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Originally established by film star Charlie Chaplin, the property serve ...

, Los Angeles and

Sterling Sound George Marino (April 15, 1947 – June 4, 2012) was an American mastering engineer known for working on albums by rock bands starting in the late 1960s. Biography Marino was born on April 15, 1947, in the New York City borough The Bronx. He at ...

, New York.

Music and lyrics

The title track is about spreading Christmas cheer on every day of the year, compared to just on Christmas Day.

Release and reception

Released on 19 October 1999, in the US by Mercury, ahead of the Christmas season, ''I Wanna Be Santa Claus'' was not a commercial success, despite its strong reviews. It was re-released on 23 September 2003 entitled ''20th Century Masters: The Best of Ringo Starr/The Christmas Collection''. Starr left Mercury after they had done no promotion for the album, which in turn resulted in little sales.

Track listing

Personnel

* Ringo Starr – lead vocals, mellotron, bellowphone, drums, percussion * Ben Labi – guitar * Bill Hudson – guitar * Joe Perry – guitar * Marc Fantini – guitar * Mark Hudson – guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, keyboards, recorder * Steffan Fantini – guitar * Steve Dudas – guitar, acoustic guitar * Matt Hurwitz – acoustic guitar * Jaydee Maness – pedal steel guitar * Armand Sabal-Lecco – bass * Jim Cox – acoustic guitar, piano, organ, keyboards, synthesizer, accordion * Scott Gordon – keyboards, synthesizer, harmonica * Dan Higgins – saxophone * Pat Zicari – saxophone * Bob Murphy – bagpipe * Ian Halliday – bagpipe * Roger Houth – bagpipe * Willie Cochrane – bagpipe * Kalijut Bhamra – tabla * George Hamer – orchestration * Various guests – backing vocals ; Footnotes ; Citations

External links

* {{Authority control 1999 Christmas albums Ringo Starr albums Mercury Records albums Christmas albums by English artists Albums produced by Mark Hudson (musician) Albums produced by Ringo Starr Albums recorded at A&M Studios Pop rock Christmas albums